


Pinkerl and Pinky

by eafay70



Category: Football RPF
Genre: Fairy Tale Elements, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-26
Updated: 2017-06-26
Packaged: 2018-11-18 02:25:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11281806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eafay70/pseuds/eafay70
Summary: Before going off to visit her superhero friend, Tina of the Treasure Trove tells Ava and her fathers the story of a pink bowtie and handkerchief.





	Pinkerl and Pinky

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mariothellama](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mariothellama/gifts), [Blue_Night](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blue_Night/gifts).



> This story is dedicated to the memory of my mother's beloved cousin Pinky, who passed away about a month ago after a monthslong battle with cancer. She was an animal lover and a very kind woman. Her nickname Pinky came from "Pinkerl," an Austrian German word for "coin purse," because she was the youngest of three children born in the US to Viennese Holocaust survivors. Since she was also the only girl, the nickname stuck among English speakers, too.
> 
> The other inspiration for this fic is Erik's infamous outfit from Kevin Volland's wedding and Marc Bartra's wedding. While real men have every right to wear pink, this particular shade of pink really doesn't work. ><

Ava tugged on her fathers' arms as they approached Tina's Treasure Trove. "Come on! Faster!"

"We run around all day for a living, Spatz." Marco couldn't help groaning from the pain in his shoulder. "Do we really have to run on our day off?"

"Yes, Vati!" Ava replied, coming to an abrupt stop at the entrance to the secondhand shop. "See? Nobody's here but us!"

Erik decided not to ask her why she didn't want anyone else there. Instead, he panted out, "Are you training to be a weightlifter or something? You're way too strong for your own good."

Ava shrugged, staring at a sign on the door. She slowly read it out loud. "Please note: Tina's Treasure Trove will be closed from Thursday, the 29th of June, until Monday, the third of July. Thank you for your understanding."

"Very good!" Marco kissed the top of her head.

"Why is the shop closing?" Ava loudly swallowed back a sob.

"Let's go inside and find out," Marco whispered softly.

And so they did. "Hello, Ava!" Tina gave her a big hug.

"Why are you closing the shop??" Ava demanded, her lip quivering.

"Do you remember my friend the superhero who trains magical creatures in Freiburg?"

Ava nodded. "She lives with Fechtar's relatives."

"Exactly. I'm going to visit her so we can look for flying things like Pinkerl and Pinky."

Ava furrowed her brow. "What's a Pinkerl?"

"It's a change purse from Vienna." The woman walked to the counter and produced a change purse with googly eyes and a smile resembling a croissant. "Would you like to hear the story?"

They all nodded. "That pink looks familiar," Erik noted wistfully.

"Quiet, Papa!" Ava ordered.

_This story takes place in Kuschel-Land, where Fechtar and Schmetterling first met. As you know, Kuschel-Land is home to mascots like Emma and Berni, not to mention many other magical creatures. It's where Fechtar and Schmetterling first met, and it's home to flying things like magical handkerchiefs and ties._

_The handkerchiefs resemble mini-flying carpets, flying around and creating cool breezes in the hot summer. And the ties move from tree to tree, usually near the handkerchiefs because they're good friends. The neckties have no trouble keeping pace with the handkerchiefs, but the bowties can't move as quickly because they're shorter. They're considered an endangered species in Kuschel-Land._

"Vati wears bowties sometimes," Ava observed. "So does Papa."

Tina smiled. "Bowties are becoming more and more popular these days. But they still can't fly as quickly as neckties."

 _One day, a handkerchief named Pinkerl and a bowtie named Pinky, who were best friends, were flying about among the trees when the thunder began to rumble and the rain began to pour. Pinkerl saw a hole in a tree where they could wait out the storm, but poor Pinky couldn't fly that far. So Pinkerl decided to try carrying Pinky. Unfortunately, the rain made everything heavier, so the two friends fell from the sky and onto a branch! By a stroke of luck, the bird who lived in the hole saw what happened and helped them inside._

_Pinkerl and Pinky were both very badly hurt, so the following day, they asked the bird to help them leave Kuschel-Land for our world. They found themselves in a bakery in Vienna, where a Hungarian who was often hungry made Pinkerl into...well, a Pinkerl! He also repaired Pinky so they could live together in the bakery, which they did until they had to leave. They traveled far and wide until my friend the superhero found them trying to escape an angry raven. And now they're here._

Tina took out a pink bowtie and placed it next to the Pinkerl. The bowtie had its own googly eyes and smile. "Why do they have croissant mouths?" Ava asked.

"Those aren't croissants," Tina explained. "They're Kipferl, which are vanilla crescent rolls. Quite delicious."

Ava looked up at her fathers with pleading eyes. Marco shook his head. "We don't allow that color. It looks terrible on your Papa."

"Hey!" Erik pouted. "I thought you liked me in any color possible! Unconditional love, you know?"

"They can live on the shelf in the kitchen," Ava said. "Please??"

Marco sighed, kissing Erik on the nose. "Will it make you happy, sweetheart?"

Erik nodded. "Let's do it."

And so it was that Pinkerl and Pinky found a new home in the Reus-Durm kitchen, where they watched the family cook and lived happily ever after.

**Author's Note:**

> You may ask, "Why are those dates this weekend?" Well, that's because I will be traveling to Vermont and moving into my German immersive program this weekend! Email and internet access will be limited, and the language pledge to only use German for seven weeks will take effect the evening of July 3rd. I'm so excited! =D And I will be writing fics in German taking place in Kuschel-Land as time permits. <3


End file.
